The Mountain West’s next media rights deal isn’t being negotiated.
It’s being papered.
Multiple sources including a league official, a Mountain West television partner, and The Big Mountain’s JY have confirmed that the conference’s 2026–2031 media rights package is in the final legal stage. The core structure is done. The partners are locked. The announcement is coming in August. The only thing left is the rollout.
Here’s what we know and more importantly, what we’ve known since July.
The Core: CBS Never Left
When The Scarlet Standard reported on July 16 that CBS would remain a core rights partner, it wasn’t speculation. It was structural. CBS Sports Network will continue to carry Mountain West football and basketball. That relationship is not changing.
What did change was priority access. The Pac-12 now owns the 3:30 p.m. Eastern window on CBS. But the Mountain West didn’t lose the network. It stayed in the system on a national cable platform with consistent reach. CBS proper is still on the table for select matchups depending on ranking, availability, and inventory.
The point isn’t prestige. It’s access. And the Mountain West still has it.
FOX Isn’t Out. But the Anchor Changed.
FOX hasn’t signed yet. But that’s procedural. The network is still negotiating its share of the package, and both sides expect it to close. The delay isn’t about interest. It’s about positioning.
The last deal was built around Boise State. This one isn’t. Boise is gone. San Diego State is gone. So is Fresno. The Friday night window still exists but now it runs through Las Vegas.
If FOX renews, it will do so for UNLV. That’s the media market. That’s the stadium. That’s the production value. Dan Mullen gives the program a national face. FOX knows the formula because they built it with Boise. The pieces are still here.
If the deal closes as expected, FOX will keep:
Friday night national kickoffs
The Mountain West Championship Game
A priority slate built around UNLV, Air Force, and Hawai‘i
FOX doesn’t need tradition. It needs content. And the Mountain West can still deliver that.
Streaming Was Always the Plan
Back on July 11, we outlined the most realistic structure for the next Mountain West package: a linear core, a streaming tier, and a multi-partner platform strategy. That’s exactly what the deal now reflects.
JY confirmed this week that a new streaming partner has already been selected. The name isn’t public yet, but multiple conference-side sources say the choice is consistent with what we projected: Max, Amazon, or ESPN+.
Max (WBD) has already carried Mountain West basketball and tested football in 2023.
Amazon Prime is actively expanding its sports footprint.
ESPN+ remains a fallback layer for digital overflow, even without linear rights.
The streaming partner will handle:
Midweek and overflow football
Basketball inventory not picked up by CBS/FOX
Olympic and non-revenue sports
This layer won’t just carry leftovers. It’s the volume engine of the deal.
Secondary Windows Are Still Being Packaged
The third tier what we previously called “shoulder coverage” is still fluid. That includes CW, truTV, TNT Sports, or even secondary ESPN/Paramount properties.
This is where late-night football, off-day tipoffs, or Hawai‘i-specific content could land. No one expects these to drive revenue. But they give the conference added flexibility and viewership beyond traditional blocks.
It’s the kind of tier that gets announced last — and changes depending on who gets cut from other networks’ fall schedules.
The Leverage Was Never the Brand. It Was the Time Slot.
The biggest myth in realignment media coverage is that the Mountain West lost its value when it lost Boise State.
That was never the value.
The Mountain West’s leverage isn’t brand equity it’s inventory. Specifically, late-night, live football inventory in the Pacific and Mountain time zones. No other FBS conference can consistently deliver games at 7:30 or 8:00 p.m. PT. Not the SEC. Not the Big Ten. Not the Pac-12 rebuild.
That’s why this deal still happened. That’s why CBS stayed. That’s why FOX hasn’t walked. And that’s why streamers were interested.
The Mountain West isn’t selling legacy. It’s selling slots. And that still works.
What’s Done & What’s Not
Locked In:
CBS Sports Network as the primary linear partner
2026–2031 contract cycle aligned with Grant of Rights
New streaming partner selected and finalized
Structure built on multi-platform delivery, not exclusivity
Still Being Finalized:
FOX’s official role (expected to include Friday nights + title game)
Identity of the new streaming partner (Max, Amazon, or ESPN+ likely)
Secondary packaging (CW, truTV, ESPN+, etc.)
All indications are that the final announcement comes before the end of August.
Final Thought: The Deal’s Not Big. But It’s Built Right.
This won’t be a breakout media deal. It won’t double payouts or put the Mountain West back on national ABC windows.
But it will do exactly what it needed to do: keep the league on screens, lock in distribution, and turn a collapsing media environment into a survivable structure.
The Mountain West doesn’t own the past. But it still owns the time slot.
And in 2025, that’s enough.